Access Bank Overtakes Zenith As Nigeria’s Biggest Bank By Asset, Revenue

Access Bank Plc has displaced Zenith Bank Plc to emerge as Nigeria’s biggest bank by asset and revenue in 2020 THE WHISTLER can report.

This is based on the result contained in Access Bank’s financial report for the full year 2020, posted on Thursday.

Access Bank posted a surge in its asset from N7.14trn recorded in 2019 to N8.68trn  in the full year of 20202.        

The asset rise exceeds Zenith Bank Plc’s 34 per cent surge in asset base in 2020, which lifted the value from N6.347trn 2019 to N8.481trn in 2020, making it the largest bank by asset as at the time it posted its full year 2020 results in February this year.

Access Bank executed several expansion deals last year including acquisitions of Kenya, Zambia, Cameroon and Mozambique banks.

Access also grew its revenue from N666.75bn in 2019 to  N764.7 in 2020.

This is compared to Zenith, which saw a rise in turnover from N662.25bn recorded in 2019 to N696.45bn in 2020.

But Zenith bank pulled a larger profit which was up by 10.4 per cent from N208.84bn to N230.565bn in 2020, making it the most profitable bank in the country.

For Access bank, profit grew in 2020 to N106bn from the N94.05bn recorded in 2019- a figure which is 117.5 per cent lower than the N230.565bn recorded by Zenith bank.